WThe real time strategy (RTS) computer game StarCraft had an active professional competition circuit, particularly in South Korea. The two major game channels in South Korea, Ongamenet and MBCGame, each ran a Starleague, viewed by millions of fans.
WThe AfreecaTV StarCraft League (ASL) is a StarCraft: Remastered tournament series hosted by afreecaTV in South Korea. It began its first season in June 2016 and used StarCraft: Brood War for its first three seasons prior to the release of StarCraft: Remastered. It is broadcast regularly in Korean and English on afreecaTV's own streaming platform as well as YouTube. The main English language casters for the event are Dan "Artosis" Stemkoski and Nicolas "Tasteless" Plott.
WThe Battle.net World Championship Series (BWCS) was the shared branding for video game tournaments held by Blizzard Entertainment for their games StarCraft II (SC2) and World of Warcraft (WoW) in 2012. The StarCraft II event series, the StarCraft II World Championship Series, maintained the World Championship Series branding beyond the year and continued to use it until being replaced by the ESL Pro Tour StarCraft II in 2020, but the Battle.net World Championship Series brand was not used beyond 2012.
WBlizzCon is an annual gaming convention held by Blizzard Entertainment to promote its major franchises including Warcraft, StarCraft, Diablo, Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, and Overwatch. The first BlizzCon was held in October 2005, and since then, all of the conventions have been held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, in the same metropolitan area as Blizzard's headquarters in Irvine. The convention features game-related announcements, previews of upcoming Blizzard Entertainment games and content, Q&A sessions and panels, costume contests, and playable versions of various Blizzard games. The closing night has featured concerts by The Offspring, Tenacious D, Foo Fighters, Ozzy Osbourne, Blink-182, Metallica, Linkin Park, "Weird Al" Yankovic, and Muse. A similar event was the Blizzard Worldwide Invitational, held outside the U.S. from 2004 to 2008.
WThe Electronic Sports World Convention (ESWC) is an international professional gaming championship. Every year, winners of national qualifier events around the world earn the right to represent their country in the ESWC Finals. The event has been praised for its organisation and ability to put on a good show for spectators.
WGlobal StarCraft II League (GSL) is a StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void tournament hosted by afreecaTV and Blizzard Entertainment in South Korea. GOMeXp had hosted it until the last season of 2015. There is also an English language stream available. The tournament features two leagues, Code S (major) and Code A (minor). Code S and Code A are mainly cast by Dan "Artosis" Stemkoski and Nicolas "Tasteless" Plott, they are sometimes helped by former professional player Jake "NoRegreT" Umpleby. The event is broadcast Wednesdays and Saturdays on TwitchTV.
WGOMTV Global StarCraft II Team League (GSTL) is a StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm tournament hosted by GomTV and Blizzard Entertainment in South Korea. While the Global StarCraft II League is an individual competition, the GSTL focuses on team play. The GSTL is broadcast on Thursday and Friday, whereas the GOMTV Global StarCraft II League is broadcast on Monday to Wednesday.
WThe KeSPA Cup is an annual esports event organized by KeSPA, the Korean eSports Association. As of the 2020 edition, the tournament is organized for League of Legends. Until 2016, the tournament was also organized for StarCraft II.
WThe Korea StarCraft League (KSL) was a StarCraft: Remastered tournament series hosted by Blizzard Entertainment in South Korea. It was announced in June 2018 and began its first season the following month. It was broadcast regularly in Korean and English on Twitch. The main English language casters for the event were Dan "Artosis" Stemkoski and Nicolas "Tasteless" Plott. It ran alongside afreecaTV's AfreecaTV StarCraft League (ASL) as one of the two top level Korean leagues for StarCraft: Remastered. KSL was discontinued in March 2020 after 4 seasons.
WMajor League Gaming Corp. (MLG) is a professional esports organization. MLG is headquartered in New York City, New York and was founded in 2002 by Sundance DiGiovanni and Mike Sepso. MLG has held official video game tournaments throughout the United States and Canada. The Boost Mobile MLG Pro Circuit was a television broadcast of Halo 2 MLG tournaments in 2006 and 2007, ESPN.com, and other broadband sites. The company has also been involved in television production, and game development. MLG's aim is to elevate computer and console game tournaments to viable competitive and spectator events.
WThe MBCGame StarCraft League, also known as MSL, was a StarCraft tournament hosted by Korean television network MBCGame. The tournament started out in 2002 under the name of KPGA Tour, and in 2003 it was renamed the MSL. On February 1, 2012, MBCGame ceased operations and the MSL was discontinued. Throughout its lifetime, the MSL gave away the equivalent of over US$1.6 million in prize money.
WThe North American Star League was a professional e-sports league that features the games StarCraft II and Heroes of Newerth. Originally modeled after successful South Korean professional StarCraft leagues, it was founded in 2011 by Russell Pfister and Duncan Stewart. Following the mid-year departure of Stewart, Mark K. Brown was tapped to fill the position of Chief Operating Officer in August 2011, and currently serves in that capacity.
WThe Starleague, or the Ongamenet Starleague (OSL), was a professional South Korean StarCraft individual league run by Ongamenet. It first ran StarCraft: Brood War competitions but transitioned to StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty after that game's release. The Starleague was broadcast on Korean cable television. The league folded after the 2012 season.
WThe AMD Professional Gamers League (PGL), founded around 1997, was one of the first professional computer gaming eSports leagues. The PGL was run by Total Entertainment Network and was sponsored by AMD. The first professional tournament they held was for StarCraft in September 1997. The league was official unveiled at a press conference at Candlestick Park in San Francisco on November 3, 1997. It was sponsored by Microsoft, Nvidia, and Levi Strauss & Co. The organization raised over $1.2mil USD in sponsorship money.
WThe Taiwan eSports League (TeSL) is a professional eSports league in Taiwan. They have recently just started up their StarCraft II league in 2011. TeSL is the first league in the world to show StarCraft II games on their live television. And they are also the first StarCraft II league where all players have a base salary. Every player of the five teams has a steady monthly salary. Their goal is to help all of their players get to the point where they are able to play and compete at the same level as their famed player Yang "Sen" Chia Cheng. Games are broadcast on the Videoland Television Network.
WThe World Cyber Games (WCG) is an international esports competition with multi-game titles in which hundreds of esports athletes from around the world participate in a variety of competitions also known as Esports Olympics. WCG events attempt to emulate a traditional sporting tournament, such as the Olympic Games; events included an official opening ceremony, and players from various countries competing for gold, silver, and bronze medals. WCG are held every year in other cities around the world. The WCG 2020 competition received nearly 650 million views worldwide.
WWorld Electronic Sports Games (WESG) is an international esports championship tournament based in Shanghai and organized by AliSports. The first edition has a total prize pool of over US$5.5 million . The finals were held in December 2016.